Every November the same calls start: a van driver is two hours from a pass, the signs say chains required, and nobody on the load planned for it. Chain laws differ by state, and the rules for when they apply change with the conditions on the day, so the only safe plan is to be ready before the climb. Here is the list we run through with van carriers before a winter mountain load.
1. Know which passes are on the route. Interstate 70 in Colorado, Interstate 80 over Donner, Interstate 5 through the Siskiyous, Snoqualmie on Interstate 90. Check the state DOT road map the night before and again at the last fuel stop.
2. Carry chains that fit. Count the drive tires and make sure the set matches the tire size on the truck, not the last truck you drove. A missing or wrong-size set means a parked truck and, in some states, a fine.
3. Practise once in a dry lot. Hanging chains for the first time in sleet, on a shoulder, in the dark, is how fingers and schedules get hurt.
4. Build weather time into the appointment. If the pass closes, the receiver still has a schedule. Tell the broker early; a call six hours ahead is a reschedule, a call at the gate is a missed load.
5. Watch the weight. A heavy van climbs slowly and burns fuel. Know your gross before you commit to the grade.
6. Have a fallback stop. Pick a truck stop on each side of the pass where you can wait out a closure legally and safely.
7. Talk to dispatch before, not after. A load that crosses the Rockies in January should pay for the risk and the extra hours. If the rate does not cover a possible overnight wait, it is the wrong load.
That last point is where most of the money is. If you would rather have a dispatch team that plans van loads around the weather and argues the rate with the pass in mind, that is the work we do every winter.
Drive slow, chain early, and keep the paperwork dry.